Gardner Blooms

The Boston Globe‘s Geoff Edgers covers the unveiling of the Gardner Museum extension, the last of three major museum expansions in Boston:

Gardner’s original Venetian-style palazzo will remain almost untouched as the wing connects to the existing museum through a glass passageway. A new four-story building will host visitor services such as the gift shop, cafe, and coat check, which are currently sited in cramped quarters in the palace. A new 300-seat music hall in the building will allow the Gardner to stop holding concerts in its delicate, often overcrowded tapestry room. A soaring new gallery for temporary shows, a visitors’ “Living Room,” offices, and conservation and education facilities will round out the building. A smaller second structure with a sloping glass roof will host greenhouses and apartments for artists-in-residence.

In total, the new wing will add 70,000 square feet to the museum’s current 60,000 square feet. Construction is already underway on the wing, which is located in part on the grounds of Gardner’s former Carriage House, destroyed in July amid controversy over the terms of her will and the Carriage House’s historic significance.